Intralipid infusions during IVF: hype or help?

Are intralipid infusions really needed during IVF treatment? Hot topic. Or lukewarm, if you believe fertility guru Robert Winston. He has tweeted: ‘Intralipids are peddled for so-called immune infertility. Yet another remedy being used without real evidence it works.’ Is he right? Let’s take a close look at intralipids and whether they work for fertility patients or not.

First off, intralipid infusion therapy isn’t new. Since the 1960s, intralipids have been fed intravenously to patients to boost nutrition after operations. Premature babies get them too. A blend of soya bean oil, egg yolk, glycerin and water, intralipids infuse your body with calories. You might not make these essential fatty acids yourself – or at least not in the quantity given.

In 2011, UK researchers gave intralipid infusions to 50 women. All had endured numerous unsuccessful IVF cycles. Half of them got pregnant after taking the intralipids. The miscarriage rate was higher for another group who weren’t given intralipids. Small study, but an interesting one.

So what’s going on? Well, some doctors think natural killer (NK) cells in the body attack embryos and that intralipids stop that happening. But larger randomized trials into IVF and intralipids are needed to really prove this. Which is Lord Winston’s point. Many so-called IVF breakthroughs, often heavily marketed by fertility clinics, need large-scale trials. Little ones lack credibility. Some say it’s irresponsible to market new treatments and technologies that don’t have meaty evidence to back them up.

But clinics hold the trump card. Anxious IVF patients are soft targets for hard marketers. In consulting rooms and online, they’re told their bodies may be sabotaging their pregnancies because their embryos are perceived as infections. This ‘NK’ scare may be completely unfounded. Natural killer cells: you have to hand it to the person who coined that phrase. It’s a mortifying description for vulnerable IVF patients willing to try anything to improve their chances.

The truth is, intralipids might help. Might. Not will. If you’ve had miscarriages, repeated implantation failure and have elevated NK levels, intralipid infusion therapy will be on your clinic’s price list. As will a steroid like Prednisolone, sometimes called Prednisone. Or Clexane, a blood thinner that reputedly guards against uterine clots. The jury’s out on all three.

A typical course of IVF intralipid treatment is two infusions: the first one 7 to 10 days before your scheduled egg retrieval; the second on your embryo transfer day. Some clinics propose a third infusion after a positive pregnancy test and monthly ones till the 13-week mark. They’ll charge you for them too.

How much do intralipid infusions cost? In the UK, it’s a minefield. Some fertility clinics will only do them if you’re having treatment with them. Expect to pay £500 or more for two treatments. You may be charged a consultation fee and/or a booking fee. Nursing services will even come to your home, but you’ll need a prescription, which you may only get after paying for a private consultation. While intralipids are an expensive add-on in the UK, they’re often cheaper abroad. The price at our Czech IVF clinic is 100 euros. Enough said.

Our verdict on intralipids during IVF? Be wary. Don’t expect miracles. Don’t have them at all if you’ve got an egg or soy allergy or might react badly to a cannula in your arm. There’s also a one-per-cent chance of a headache, nausea and vomiting. And read what Robert Winston has to say about natural killer cells. To say he’s sceptical would be the understatement of the year. For now, we’re with him.

13 comments

Cindy

Never give up. I’m doing egg doner. Im 45 nearly 46. On my 12th cycle with one embryo left. Had 7 miscarriages and just found out I’ve got nkc so I’m going to have intralipid too. I’ll be also on progesterone pessaries and clexane injections and predisdone. Praying all goes well.

I am 40 and We have had 2 failed fresh transfer and one failed frozen we onto our 4th I couldn’t find a Dr hat would prescribe and monitor Intralipids thankfully I found a naturopathic dr that would! I did the Intralipid yesterday…. transfer is next week I am feeling very positive with all that I have read about Intralipids thank you for your positive stories 🙂 god bless

I am 43 and have had 9 ivf/icsi treatments over the last 14 years, with 2 positive tests that led to very early miscarriages.
My infertility is unexplained, eggs sperm etc all good. So I sometimes wonder if i should have given up too as maybe this wasn’t meant to be for me……but crazy i know i am giving it one last shot!!
I am having donor eggs for the first time and my first Intralipid on Monday. I was unsure on intralipids and was thinking today about cancelling my appointment on Monday but this has given me some encouragement and peace of mind!
I wish you all the best Ead on what ever decision you make, its certainly not an easy one!

Best of luck! Our transfer is next week after one round of Intralipids

May 23, 2018

Nora

I have been trying to conceive 11 years we have unexplained infertility and had 4 iui and 6 icsi / ivf treatments and never got pregnant never got a positive result never ever.
Last time my doctor scratched the uterus lining and gave me Intralipid one period before and gave me ( Co Q10 ) like a vitamin that gives you better egg quality
And my husband took 3 months before ivf 2 fertility men vitamins ( fertil pro men & fertil pro mtl)
And guess what i was pregnant first time in my life
Don’t give up and try Intralipid also try (co Q10) and the men vitamin for your husband.
I continued Intralipid after a positive and 2 more the next 2 months.
Thank God we tried it.

We had 17 miscarriages getting pregnant on our own but not staying past 7 weeks, we did intralipid once & have a healthy 3 year old. I wouldn’t count it out & it’s nothing harmful so why not try it before you try all these other expensive tests & treatments.

Ead- I think you should go for it! why not try everything. I had numerous early misscariages as well and did intralipid once and have a healthy baby boy. Now we’re trying to get pregnant with #2 without intralipids and guess what, I can’t stay pregnant again.

October 19, 2017

Ead

I have gotten pregnant relatively easily even at the age of 39 and 40. I had 4 miscarriages with my husband and all 4 were between 6-11 weeks and all had heartbeats. My progesterone was a bit low and I have borderline hypothyroidism. My husbands sperm tests are fine. I am also a SMA, carrier he is not. After hearing from most REs and OBs docs that my age was the reason for my miscarriages I saw another RE and RPL specialist who had more tests run on us. He says I have active nk cells and me and my husband are a partial DQ alpha match which is what is causing my pregnancy losses. He suggested I try ivf egg banking and when/if we get embryos, test them and transfer 1 at a time. So now we have gone through 3 failed egg retrieval cycles with that doc. All 3 cycles only yielded 2-4 eggs retrieved in each cycle, all fertilized easily however, only 1 embryo made it to pgs testing and that was abnormal. Now I am a whopping 43, should we give up? I already know about egg donors.

Never give up! I’m 43, actually lying at my clinic having my intralipid drip, had 2 mc this year, one was natural pregnancy, the last one was egg donor FET…2nd transfer is Thursday, I haven’t given up yet